PROJECT: FAILING FLESH

If you think that the name of this band is strange and unusual, wait until you listen to the music that this trio have created for you people. Project: Failing Flesh was formed by Tim Gutierrez and Kevin 131 and can be described as Modern Thrash Metal with futuristic elements. Yes, I understand that this description is not helping you enough, but maybe if I mention the fact that the person who handles the vocals in this album is ex-Voivod vocalist Eric Forrest, things will become clearer for you.

It is quite obvious that Tim and Kevin are both fans of fast and aggressive Thrash Metal, all of course based on the guitar riffs which are presented in this album. There are no limits as to what you will hear from these low chorded and sometimes distorted guitars, the aggression and technicality of which will remind you of Slayer and Grip Inc. It is also inevitable that Eric Forrest’s participation on albums such as “Negatron”, “Phobos” and “Outer Limits” would play a significant role in the creation of the sound of this band/project, which it did. As with Voivod, the use of samples and futuristic keyboard sounds are present throughout this ten track release. I would also like to make a special reference to Clayton Ingerson’s (Dysrhythmia) participation in the song “9mm Movie”, where the results from the use of the Viola were simply amazing.

What I really enjoyed about 'A Beautiful Sickness' though, is the subject that the trio chose to deal with, and that is the current situation with the Market of human organs. Before you start jumping to conclusions, I want to make clear that this band has lyrically nothing in common with outfits like Cannibal Corpse and Pungent Stench. True to the original Thrash Metal spirit, the members of “Project: Failing Flesh” decided to speak their minds about the corruption that exists in these so-called “Philanthropic” Organ Donation institutions. It seems that the members of the band have made quite some research here, and I hope that the reason for this was not down to personal experience. It is always nice to see that there are some artists out there that are smart enough to realize that the only way to solve a problem is to look at it straight in the eyes, and that stories about Demons ascending from the depths of hell can be entertaining up to a certain extent, but do not reflect the pulse of a society that is constantly licking it’s wounds from the everyday struggle for survival.

From this powerful ten-track 'protest', I found myself enjoying the Slayeric riffs and melodic keyboard melodies of “Planet Dead”, the weird sounds of the Voivod-influenced “9mm Movie”, the pure energy of “Dementia Pugilistica”, as well as the very interesting cover of Venom’s classic “Warhead”.

'A Beautiful Sickness' is a forty minute album that deserves a lot more than just your attention. It is obviously an album with a message, something that you cannot find easily these days. Next time that you visit the record shop of your choice, ask them to play this album for you – I hope that after this experience, you will need a slightly bigger bag to help you carry your shopping.

Un attimo! Fermi tutti! Questo disco è al momento uno dei migliori 3 usciti quest’anno! Ecco, l’ho detto, ora possiamo pure iniziare e riordinare le idee.
Il giorno dopo avermi mandato il pacco di promos da recensire, la sera il Graz mi chiama e mi dice che ho un’ora per mandargli una decina di domande su un gruppo, i Project: Failing Flesh, perché stanno partendo per il tour. In fretta e furia schiaffo il cd nel lettore e mi tuffo nella loro info-sheet per vedere se c’è qualcosa di interessante che possa essere al centro di un’intervista. Con mia sorpresa scopro che il gruppo in questione vede alla voce niente di meno che Eric Forrest, ex singer dei Voivod su dischi quali “Negatron” e “Phobos”. Ma la sorpresa ancora più grande è che, anche ad un ascolto distratto del disco (come era in quel momento), venivo catturato da questo suono, freddo, cibernetico, alieno, industriale, malato. Ho capito subito che mi trovavo al cospetto di qualcosa fuori dall’ordinario, così questa mattina, quando ho aperto gli occhi, questo “A Beautiful Sickness” è stato il mio pensiero.
Il segreto dei P:FF sta tutto in un sound che sembra magicamente sospeso tra gli anni ’80 e i ’90, riuscendo a mettere insieme, in una sintesi assoluta, tutto quanto di buono c’è stato in quel periodo. Evidenti sono i richiami alle dissonanze care ai Voivod, ma in quegli archi indiavolati e stridenti e in quella note di piano che ogni tanto straniano i pezzi è facile ritrovarci echi dei Neurosis, ed il tutto si innesta su un Thrash Metal dalle forte tinte industriali, con gelidi synths e vocals filtrate, con riffs ora granitici ora di slayeriana memoria, che riporta alla mente cose dei Fear Factory e degli Strapping Young Lad. Tuttavia il drumming quadrato è mitigato da massicce dosi di melodia aliena (Meshuggah docet), e dalla voce di Eric, sgraziata e tipicamente eighties. È difficile descrivere il sound, posso solo darvi coordinate sparse che tuttavia pur assommate non riescono a dare idea di un totale assolutamente grandioso! Un disco ricco di sfumature, che ad ogni ascolto svela qualcosa di nuovo e di ancor più eccitante, che sa mostrarsi ora rabbioso e potente, ora invece sospeso tra derive spaziali e cullato da oscure nebulose.
Non c’è un solo pezzo debole e nel contempo non ci sono due pezzi uguali. L’iniziale title-track semplicemente devasta, la susseguente “Planet Dead” si apre con il suono di archi prima di esplodere in patterns ritmici quadrati e moderni, “9mm Movie” apre lenta e pesantissima, la claustrofobia è accentuata da tastiere angosciose, poi entra la voce di Eric che sembra venire dallo spazio profondo, la song cresce minacciosa fino a sfociare in un tripudio di archi impazziti, un vero incubo in musica. “Scene Of The Crime” sembra uscita da “Archetype”, pur avendo una struttura molto più progressiva ed aliena. E come non citare l’industrial pesante e minaccioso di “Taste Of The Lie” o la conclusiva cover dei Venom “Warhead”, resa molto più brutale e pesante, in una sorta di postcore a forte tinte doomy.
A questo disco giuro che non manca nulla, e se non gli do il massimo dei voti è solo perché sono sicuro che al prossimo disco la band si spingerà ancora oltre e, onestamente, non vedo l’ora. Fatelo vostro ad ogni costo.

Project: Failing Flesh are a new band, which is consisted of only three members, Eric Forrest (vocalist of E-Force and ex-Voivod), Tim Gutierrez and Kevin131. Even though their number may seem as a disadvantage, these three talented guys have managed to join forces and create an album that meets every demand in the field of extreme metal. With a variety of instruments (guitars, violins, keyboards, cello, bass and drums) “A Beautiful Sickness” is the most positive result anyone could have asked for. Exceptional credits must go to Kevin131 for the recording and engineering of the album. Having produced this work themselves, the album is a job well done. No wonder it attracted the interest of Karmageddon, that resulted in the re-release of the album with a new artwork. In “A Beautiful Sickness” we have a blend of everything: industrial, thrash and death metal, with bits and pieces of techno and traditional metal. Eric Forrest is at his best and you get swept by the strong guitar riffs and the whole force that their music hits you with. All and all it is a fresh album, plus a good cover of Venom’s “Warhead” given with the band’s unique style.

Der frühere Voivod- und jetzige E-Force-Sänger Eric Forrest hat sich mit Project: Failing Flesh ein schmuckes Projekt geleistet, das für meinen Geschmack an die vielfach überbewerteten Fear Factory heranstinken kann. Das Trio prügelt, leidet und maschint sich durch 10 druckvolle, abwechslungsreiche (okay, das kann man beim Venom-Cover „Warhead“ nicht wirklich sagen, hehe…) und super produzierte Tracks, die neben Blastparts, Fear Factory-mäßigem Riffing und modernen Vocals (Gebrüll wechselt sich mit cleanen Parts) auch viele abgefahrene Elemente wie Orgel („A Beautiful Sickness“), Geigen („9mm Movie“) und Klavier, sowie weitere Streicher („Long Time Voices“) enthalten. Klar hat man so was in der Art eben von Fear Factory oder auch mal Ministry („Entrance Wound“) gehört, auch erinnert man mal an Darkane („Planet Dead“) oder sogar groovy Soulfly („Highwire Act“), im zweistelligen Bereich können sich Eric und seine beiden Konsorten mit ihrem modernen Metal aber platzieren. Nicht neu, aber sehr cool!

Metal Eagle - (7.5 out of 10) by Panagiotis "Black Templar" Stathis. October 2004

This is the how heavy metal should be played in our days. It should be extreme, challenging and incorporate each characteristic of the heritage that the forefathers of this kind of music left to us. Project: Failing Flesh style of play is minimalistic but at the same time the songs in this album are very interesting and require your full attention in order that you may perfectly understand the artists’ intentions. You need more than two or three hearings in order to appreciate the real musical depth of this artwork. Ok, chill-out, we are not dealing here with a modern masterpiece but I must admit that this is not an “easy” record. Sharp guitar riffs, drums that roll away and the divine voice of Eric Forest ensure success through a very darkening atmosphere. The band’s members find inspiration in both death metal and industrial sounds. Cleverly arranged keyboards and musical intervals with “real” stringed instruments (viola from Dysrythmia’s Clayton Ingerson) do not ruin the final result at all as one might have thought, quite the opposite, they make the whole effort even more “spatial”. If you like bands such as Voivod and Fear Factory you will certainly become hooked on “A Beautiful Sickness” but I cannot promise anything for the rest of you. Oh yeah, they also include a cover of Venom’s classic “Warhead”, performed by the band as they have interpreted the piece.

Existe –t-il une vie après Voivoid ? Eric Forrest a depuis longtemps arrêté de se poser la question. Son projet E-Force a prouvé qu’il pouvait tenir la route. Mais ce n’est pas fini pour autant. L’homme a visiblement de la ressource. Nous le retrouvons donc au sein de Project : Failing Flesh ; un trio américain qui a décidé de suivre les voies restées inexplorées du thrash moderne. Et il y a de quoi faire. Entouré de Kevin 131 et de Tim Gutierrez, Forrest met sa voix au service d’un projet ambitieux et expérimental de toute première force. Voilà bien le style d’album qui prouve que le thrash n’est qu’un simple point de départ ; et qu’il reste encore beaucoup à inventer. Cet album allie puissance, présence d’esprit, et génie du mixage. Les rythmes y sont martiaux, carrés, et implacables. De multiples éléments viennent s’y greffer, jouant tantot sur une pulsion extrême, tantot sur un classicisme inspiré ; mais toujours teinté de modernité. Ce n’est pas par hasard si Kevin 131 et son acolyte Gutierrez ont sollicité Eric Forrest pour compléter le line-up. Il flotte derrière cet opus comme un arrière goût voivodien particulièrement bienvenu. Mais il n’est pas permis à tout le monde de s’inspirer des Maîtres canadiens. Project : Failing Flesh a osé s’offrir ce luxe et bien lui en a pris. A Beautiful Sickness est tout simplement royal.

Loufi : Contrairement à ce qui a été pompeusement annoncé un peu partout, PFF c'est pas un side-project crée par Eric Forrest, ex-VOIVOD et actuel E-FORCE. Ce projet a été échafaudé par Kevin 131 et Tim Guttierrez et Eric a simplement été le troisième larron à rejoindre l'équipe. Ca ne change pas grand chose mais ça a au moins le mérite de ne pas mettre l'avenir de E-FORCE en question.
L'amateur de la voix écorchée du bonhomme sera dans tous les cas aux anges. Le metal moderne et torturé de PFF est un terrain d'expérimentations parfait pour Eric et ses vocaux collent à merveille avec le son très compressé de cette galette. Si la base est toujours du bon vieux thrash des familles ou un petit peu de death old-school, moult arrangements et parties de synthé ont été incorporés pour aboutir à un projet très personnel, autour duquel gravite un concept assez glauque et dérangeant que je vous invite à découvrir sur leur site officiel. L'univers de PFF n'est pas fait que de musique, mais aussi d'images choc, de paroles recherchées et de vidéos inspirées des snuff movies.
La musique, pas évidente à appréhender au début, souffre un peu des sonorités électro qui semblent avoir été injectées parfois à la va-vite et sans filet ("Scene of the crime") mais au bout de quelques écoutes, on s'agrémente parfaitement de cette présence, rassuré par la qualité souvent énorme de certains riffs ("Planet dead"). On pense parfois à Voivod ("Dementia pugilistica", "Entrance wound") ou à SYL, on sent que l'énergie est puisée dans la scène hardcore ("Highwire act") et ponctuellement, PFF définit une nouvelle barrière entre bruitisme et pesanteur pour accoucher d'un énorme "Taste of the lie" ou de l'étrange "9 mm movie".
La palette d'influences présente ici est assez large pour permettre au groupe de travailler très librement et, sans parler de véritable création de style, PFF a trouvé une identité dès sa première réalisation. Le processus d'écriture peut paraître hermétique à beaucoup de personnes mais la façon dont le concept a été traité mérite plus d'une écoute attentive. Pour couronner le tout, une épatante reprise du "Warhead" de Venom vient clôturer l'album en s'intégrant parfaitement dans la lignée de ce qui a précédé, loin de l'incongruité de certains bonus-tracks.
Je ne suis pas un défenseur chevronné de la voix de Eric Forrest mais son travail, en parfaite symbiose avec les idées des deux papas du projet, a permis de présenter un disque particulièrement homogène, d'une qualité globalement élevée pour une première sortie et qui ne ressemble pas aux nombreuses sorties actuelles car il ne se situe précisément dans aucune véritable mouvance. L'amateur déçu de Fear Factory risque fort bien de trouver son bonheur ici.

VsGreg : En tant que grand amateur de Voivod devant l'éternel, je ne pouvais être qu'attentif à la suite de la carrière d'Eric Forrest, ce talentueux bassiste/chanteur qui a donné une seconde jeunesse à Voivod à l'epoque où le groupe était au fond du gouffre, mais aussi ce mec qui a presque donné sa vie à ce combo il y a quelques années sur une route sinueuse allemande.
Dans Project Failing Flesh, Eric n'est que le chanteur, il a laissé sa basse de coté pour se consacrer pleinement au chant avec une belle réussite et son trademark si particulier. Eric n'a pas la plus belle voix du heavy metal, mais il sait l'utiliser comme un instrument suplémentaire. On retrouve ainsi sur "A beautiful sickness" les même types d'effets de voix que sur le sublissime "Phobos" de Voivod (voix filtrée, talkie walkie etc).
Les fans de Voivod s'y retrouveront donc vite d'autant plus que la musique lorgne fréquement du coté d'un thrash dynamique mis en valeur par une production froide mais adéquate. L'utilisation de violons, pianos et autres instruments inhabituels surprennent mais renforce la personnalité d'un album appétissant de bout en bout et plus que conseillable en tout cas! Un second disque est déjà terminé, Project Failing Flesh est parti pour une belle carrière à suivre avec interet.

Het Amerikaanse trio Project: Failing Flesh bestaat uit Tim Gutierrez en Kevin131 (beiden multi-instrumentalist en producer) aangevuld met zanger Eric Forrest (ex-Voivod, E-Force). “A beautiful sickness” is hun debuut. Om maar meteen met de deur in huis te vallen: dit is geen cd voor watjes, noch conservatief ingestelde metallers. Daarvoor is de muziek van Project: Failing Flesh veel te eigenzinnig, avant-gardisch en vooral grensverleggend. Thrash, industrial, death, gothic..., het wordt allemaal tot één uniek geluid gesmeed. Extreem en experimenteel zijn misschien de woorden die het best omschrijven waar dit drietal muzikaal voor staat. Als ik zeg dat Tim en Kevin zowel gitaren, bas, drums, keyboards, cello en viool hebben gespeeld, zichzelf in de bijgeleverde bio 'scientists' noemen en in hun lab nog wat samples van alledaagse geluiden in hun muziek verwerkt hebben, dan is het experimentele deel wel beschreven. Het extreme zit hem in de snoeiharde gitaarriffs (doen soms aan Arch Enemy denken), de mechanisch aandoende ritmes (zie de getriggerde drums van een Fear Factory bijvoorbeeld) met verrassende blastbeats die af en toe opduiken en de ruige zang van Eric Forrest. Man, wat een strot heeft die kerel! Een goor stemgeluid en toch verstaanbaar klinken, je moet het maar kunnen! En ook de productie van Kevin 131 is, ondanks het kleine budget (het was immers in eigen beheer opgenomen en pas later kwam Karmageddon op de proppen), is er één om U tegen te zeggen: loepzuiver maar beenhard 'in your face' (waar productionele ervaringen met Madonna en Seal al niet goed voor zijn). Ook tekstueel worden er lustig enige grenzen verlegd, “A beautiful sickness” handelt thematisch immers over de tekortkomingen van de mens op fysisch en psychisch vlak en in het cd-boekje wordt dan nog eens een discussie opgezet over de handel in menselijke organen. De belangrijkste opmerking die ik kan meegeven is dan nog dat men, ondanks alle drang tot experimenteren en grenzen verleggen, toch altijd de opbouw van een nummer èn een melodielijn heeft weten voorop te stellen. Deze cd wordt best toegankelijk na een aantal luisterbeurten en openbaart dan pas de 'ware kunst' die erachter zit. Probeer gewoon eens “Planet dead” of “Long silent voices” uit en u snapt wel wat ik bedoel. De kers op deze laboratorieel ontwikkelde taart is dan nog de fantastische en bere-heavy cover van Venom's “Warhead”, P:FF-stijl. Nogmaals, als u openstaat voor eigenzinnige, extreme metal, dan is deze cd een vette aanrader!

Really well chosen name. This a strange kind of mish-mash of speed/trashmetal elements, some gothic parts, deathmetal and weird cinematic soundscapes. Vocalist of the band is Eric Forrest, current E-Force leader and ex-Voivod. Yep, he still remembers his time with Voivod, you can clearly hear it.

Thing is, if you mix so many and so extremely different types of music, it becomes very difficult to make it sound coherent. For example, "Planet Dead" is a very nice and brutal track, but it is brought a bit out of balance by the sudden changes. Still, this remains a very interesting album. With a Venom cover called "Warhead", they clearly admit what they listen to.

What I like is the choppiness of the guitars, the thundering and stomping bass, and Eric screaming his lungs out. But there is My Dying Bride passing by again. Even a live violin joins in, this time in almost a perfect way. You get thrown back and forward all the time, until it makes you dizzy. Which can be nice too.

The lyrics make me grin all the time: severed body parts fly by and blood drips off the wall. Explicit slaughter! Overacting... funny.

If I could skip the gothic pieces and bits in this album, it would be a freaking masterpiece. This is still a very good album that will stick on you. This in the Biebob...

Il qui presente platter altro non è che la ri-edizione con differente artwork di un disco autoprodotto dai P:FF quando erano ancora senza contratto, registrato nel loro studio privato e distribuito autonomamente in sole 300 copie, prima che la tentacolare Karmageddon li notasse per supportarli con una meritata distribuzione capillare. Il primo elemento a stupire, quindi, è la qualità sonora più che soddisfacente, con suoni grezzi ma capace di donare il giusto spazio ad ogni strumento ed effetto sonoro. Del resto, gli oscuri personaggi che si celano dietro questo progetto non sono certo i primi venuti. I fondatori sono una coppia di abili polistrumentisti, Tim Gutierrez e Kevin 131 (che vanta collaborazioni con Madonna e Seal), mentre alla voce troviamo Eric Forrest, lo storico singer dei Voivod, attualmente negli E-Force. Questa strana trinità dà vita ad una sorta di industrial metal che riecheggia reminescenze di Fear Factory, Voivod, Red Harvest e DHG, edificando i brani su accelerazioni spesso black (‘Dementia Pugilistica’) e lenti momenti di malsana atmosfera (‘9mm Movie’), con un riffing sempre in bilico tra death e thrash e soluzioni ritmiche fear factoriane (esemplare sia ‘Scene of the crime’). Pur non proponendo nulla di realmente innovativo o rivoluzionario, la band risulta decisamente abile nel piazzare nel suondstream inaspettati elementi stranianti, come l’acidissimo violoncello in ‘9mm Movie’, oppure l’organo che accompagna le clean vocals di Eric nell’opener ‘A beautiful sickness’, o ancora i destabilizzanti inserti di pianoforte in ‘Long silent voices’. Procedere nell’analisi track-by-track risulterebbe alquanto insensato, dal momento che questo lavoro dovrebbe essere esperito come un unicum, le cui strutture lineari si trovano improvvisamente travolte ed infettate da strani virus nel più inaspettato dei modi, in un processo scevro di forzature, dove la coerenza sembra espressa con il meschino fine di esaltare i brevi frangenti in cui viene subdolamente negata. Un disco ‘sentito’ che non persegue la sperimentazione estrema tout court, uno sporco industrial che sembra avere, sorprendentemente, un’anima. Una nota finale per la cover di ‘Warhead’ dei Venom, conclusione schifosamente malata di questa bella malattia. Contagioso.

La nuova concezione di metal 'contaminato' introdotta da band di indubbio valore quali Fear Factory, Meshuggah e Strapping Young Lad (capitanati da tale Devin Townsend!), è sempre stata sinonimo di genialità compositiva, volta all’unione perfetta di svariati stili tra cui spiccano il thrash e l’industrial, combinati ad una 'fisicità' (soprattutto vocale) mutuata dall'hardcore moderno. Tutte caratteristiche che riemergono prepotentemente nei 'debuttanti' Project: Failing Flesh, gruppo statunitense formato per volontà dei polistrumentisti Kevin 131 e Tim Gutierrez, coadiuvati dall'ugola al vetriolo di quell'Eric Forrest, forse troppo presto liquidato dal Voivod (a tal riguardo non è esagerato definire monumentale un albo come "Phobos", sicuramente uno dei picchi creativi del gruppo canadese e del metal in generale).

"A Beautiful Sickness" è un platter che attanaglia la gola, grazie ad un impatto letteralmente devastante. Produzione 'voluminosa', in linea con quanto fatto ultimamente dai Meshuggah: suoni chirurgici, però non freddi. Al contrario, un calore innato sorge spontaneo ascoltando il riffing corposo che scaturisce dagli amplificatori lungo lo scorrere dell’album: un melting-pot sonoro di spessore, suonato con perizia da musicisti navigati, ma soprattutto ricolmi d'ispirazione, con un surplus dato un Eric Forrest decisamente sopra le righe, autore di una prova maiuscola: difficile trovare in ambito estremo un singer così espressivo e 'dilaniante' nel cadenzare le liriche. Insomma, detto con parole spicce: un grande!

Il lavoro sa assumere quanto di meglio il metal moderno ha prodotto in questi ultimi anni. Una scaletta perfetta, tra cui spicca la splendida "Highwire Act", che sa unire in modo originale dissonanze voivodiane ad una ritmica swedish death da cardiopalma, oltretutto mediata da parti mosh d'indubbio effetto: provate ad immaginare, se ci riuscite! Nella sua durata il tomo si dimostra ricco di song in egual misura sia esaltanti che ricche di particolari nascosti, pregio, quest'ultimo, dei grandi album. Una completezza d’intenti formidabile, da non lasciarsi decisamente sfuggire. Nota a margine rivolta alla Karmageddon Media che risana la sua discutibile politica, producendo (per chi scrive) una delle migliori uscite dell’anno in corso.

It’s a fact that this CD was completely unknown to me, until I took it in my hands in order to write a review. But… never mind: After a few “shots” of listening, “A Beautiful Sickness” stuck in mind (and some tunes also in my lips). It’s undoubtedly one of the most interesting albums (not necessarily good) I have heard in this year running (even if I am not fond of the specific style of music the band presents).

This release seems to take advantage of technology, without allowing the synthetic characteristics of drum machines and keyboards to detract from the organic nature of their music. Featuring Eric Forrest (ex-Voivod) as vocalist, Project: Failing Flesh show power in the guitar rhythms, with very “runny” riffs. The drum sound is very “staple” and sharp, bringing to mind (to me, at least) Fear Factory (not that I’ve heard enough of them) at first and some of The Haunted. The tempo keeps the album “flowing” interesting, from the more doom-darkened "9mm Movie", to tension tracks like "Dementia Pugilistica", with a series of blasting speed. With keyboards and violin “tangling” with the music, the vocal and guitar performance balances between ambiance and instrumentation that gives this album a technically complex aura. Forrest demonstrates huge intensity and tons of inflexion, way above his acts in Voivod (that, that I’ve heard enough of them). His performance is for sure the highlight and determinant element of this album.

Somewhere between Thrash, Death and Fear Factory-ish metal, add Project: Failing Flesh, for what they truly seem to trust. I personally would give credit to them just because they show at the end of the CD where uncompromising Metal “fountains” from, paying homage to The Gods Venom with a really factual cover of "Warhead".